Med-trump writes: Stanford microsurgeons used a poloxamer gel and bioadhesive rather than a needle and thread to join together blood vessels. The technique published in the recent issue of Nature Medicine may replace the 100 year old method of reconnecting severed blood vessels with sutures. According to the authors of the study, "ultimately, this has the potential to improve patient care by decreasing amputations, strokes and heart attacks while reducing health-care costs."